Saturday Night Slam Masters - The Greatest Arcade Wrestling Game?

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Saturday Night Slam Masters arrived in arcades in 1993, followed a few months later by an updated version of the game named Muscle Bomber Duo. Developed by Capcom who were riding high with the success of Street Fighter II and it's multiple updates, Slam Masters looked like a fighting game mixed with Pro Wrestling action. The English localization of the games took a lot of liberties, names were changed, character origin stories were altered, and these changes would also make their way to the home console versions of the game along with the game's official arcade sequel; Ring of Destruction.

[@Jays_dead_cat]

Tetsuo Haras involvement just makes this game even better than it already is. The artwork in Fist of the North Star is testosterone filled greatness

[@GamerGee]

Loved the artwork. The sequel. The details to the stage. The Japanese stages have the Japanese names regardless of languages.

[@poindextertunes]

That and Ninja Scroll are my favorite anime 💪🏻

[@r.j.stanford7435]

Man, I grew up playing pawn shop SNES games and this game was one of my favorites, especially when I was becoming a wrestling fan. Thanks for covering this.

[@JonnyAugz]

My pawn shop was Rialto Coins in Rialto California. My family bought many SNES titles from them.

[@r.j.stanford7435]

@@JonnyAugz That’s awesome! Mine was somewhere in Corpus Christi, TX. My dad had the great foresight not to get me a very expensive new console (PS1) when I barely understood how to play video games in the first place.

[@thecalibratedsuperstarslic4284]

😂 meeee toooo dude 😂 oh God I would have had a blast with you in the pawn shop

[@joshuasgaming7636]

Omg I have been trying to remember the name of this game for YEARS

[@GeekExtremist]

Same! Max's Pawn Shop in Louisiana had the best SNES games!

[@Drummer8282]

Because Wrestlefest was never released on the SNES, this was the best we could get. 4-players with the multi tap was great.

[@joezar33]

Man that would have been awesome to have Wrestlefest on the SNES and AVP best em up .

[@rickjames2.0]

That's what I thought Super Wrestlemania was going to be. I was so wrong

[@stevenrobinson9856]

​@@rickjames2.0Yeah I know. The snes had enough under the hood to pull it off.

[@PontFlair]

@@rickjames2.0 until Saturday Night Slam Masters released, most of the 8 and 16 bit Pro-Wrestling video games that were released by WWF and WCW were BUTT.

[@rickjames2.0]

@PontFlair I did like Wrestlemania Challenge for NES but I feel differently about it years later

[@JonnyAugz]

This is one of my favorite video games of all time. Fond memories.

[@jamescourt5201]

My favorite wrestling game ever. Mayor Mike Haggar says ,"when reason fails, force prevails!"

[@WarGhoulKharas]

I loved this game. Haggar was my guy. Powerbomb pin, leaping piledriver. My brother and I used to be Rasta/Grater. We were The Barbarians.

[@MarquisLeary34]

Slam! Let the boys be boys! We wore the HELL out of our SNES copy holding all kinds of ridiculous tourneys and head canon angles we vocalized while playing. Great times, and nobody could top my Haggar/Jumbo Flapjack team!

[@Drew791]

Any rapists or serial killers on the roster?

[@120420]

Onyx. Fuckin great Rap Group. Still have the Cassette tape!

[@poindextertunes]

@@120420at first i was like what?? 😅 Man I used to love watching that music video on MTV. It was cool they put Sticky Fingaz in Def Jam Fight for New York

[@KevinCruz-pu2ue]

This game was hard to find in local arcades in my area. It was a sign of fighting game oversaturation. Your typical mall stall arcade only had room for so many games and between Street Fighter, Virtual Fighter, MK II, and Samurai Shodown, you'd be hard pressed to find this game in an arcade that had all four of these other titles. This cabinet was a lot more popular in areas around the US where the fighting game community gained a foothold, like New York City or arcades on the California coast.

[@poindextertunes]

Facts. Luckily the Pizza Hut we went to as a kid had 2 NEOGEO cabs which meant it had 6-8 different games you could play. Samurai Showdown II is still my favorite fighting game

[@WTFiTzFlow]

I never knew this was a thing. I love how in-depth each characters story is flushed out. I also love all of the artwork.

[@gregorynetus5557]

Wrestlefest and saturday night slam master are my 2 favorite arcade wrestling games. Both are amazing games.word up son

[@PontFlair]

They're top tier.

[@RaamiahMorris]

Facts! I played Slam masters on snes and Wrestlefest in the arcades! Best of the best! Good times

[@gregorynetus5557]

@@RaamiahMorris i got slam master on psn capcom arcade cabinet.and wrestlefest is up there of the best arcade games ever.word up son

[@justinstevenson3736]

I got my first SNES console when I was 6 years old in 1994 and I don't remember exactly when I rented this game but I always loved wrestling and anything to do with it would have stood out to me. The characters, individual move sets, co-op compatibility, colors, and overall gameplay was second to none. I never saw this game in arcades in my areas but I would consider it one of the best wrestling games of all time and especially for it not being directly corresponded to WWE or any other promotions but has some characters that are similar to real life wrestlers (Stingr, Jumbo, and Titan just to name a few). This game will always be at the top of my favorite games of all time. I wish Capcom would have made more games similar to this. I know they did make a sequel but it was not very popular in stores. So glad you did a video about this game and just want to thank you for keeping our nostalgic childhood memories alive! You are a legend.

[@jrightly]

will I stop and watch a saturday night slam masters 2 no damage run for no reason everytime one pops up in my youtube home page? yes. yes I will. I love the overclocked style and flair. watching the animations is a delight.

[@jmtejada]

Great video and I loved the game as kid. A note about King Rasta: you mentioned the Japanese localized version as having the character hail from the Dominican Republic but that article you cited is from the island nation of Dominica, a different country and therefore inapplicable to Rasta if he indeed is from DR

[@kidneystonermusic]

I played this game for years!!! Love it so much. Still remember all the songs and entrances. Absolutely wonderful game.

[@shanehall4454]

I enjoyed the characters so much in this game that I would create them in the WWF games back in the day

[@marcludwick512]

I saw this once in the arcade at a casino when a kid in 93. Bought it for my SNES when it came out. Also rented it for the Genesis since it had that deathmatch feature. Compared to other wrestling games we had on consoles, this looked and played awesome.

[@PontFlair]

Exactly. 💯% We did NOT have great Pro-Wrestling video game selections on the 8 bit and 16 bit consoles. Aside from "Tecmo World Wrestling" and Fire-Pro's Grandfather "Pro Wrestling" on NES, there was not a lot to choose from. Saturday Night Slam Masters was a very welcomed addition bc it was very bare bones in the genre. And this game was awesome.

[@TheyCallMeSledge]

I'd be as crazy enough to say this is the best wrestling game with an arcade theme until WrestleMania from Midway. Me and the guys played this a ton on the SNES, hell it's still pretty fun to this day when I saw the arcade cabinet of the game at Barcade a couple years ago. It's a certified classic. 😄

[@ShengNotShane]

The jalapeno comet sounds like a move Bobby Heenan would name. Like calling Tito Santana's finish the flying burrito. And Tatanka's finish the papoose to-go.

[@PontFlair]

R.I.P. Heenan Also, shout Jessie Ventura, he called Tito "Chico Santana".

[@Slim451]

Oh man I saw the screen for this and I was like... YYYYEEEESSSSSSSSSS! I still got my SNES version of the game. I played it as a kid but never got to see it in the arcade. But I had so much fun with this game as a kid. So cool to see it again.

[@Hardcastle83]

This is vaguely nostalgic but I think my memory absorbed it into my memory of "3 count bout". I think child me couldn't tell the difference, but I think I used to encounter both cabinets out and about.

[@tommywartime]

This game was a banger for a while every weekend with the boys

[@LloydDafoe27]

This brought back so many awesome memories! Truly Loved this video!!! Keep up the great work!!!! Boom !!!! Much love from Florida 🤘

[@TheSerpentsEye]

I'm probably aging myself here, but back in the day we only owned 10 or less game cartridges. Slam Masters was one of my Super Ninendo games. l I played it religiously. As a Big Van Vader mark, I really enjoyed playing as Grater. One of my other SNES cartridges was Final Fight and Mike Haggar carried over from that game.

[@PontFlair]

Slam Masters is a classic and so is that 1st Final Fight game on SNES. Something about that beginning theme on the 1st level of Final Fight stuck with me into my adulthood. Every now and again, I hum it LOL

[@logicallydashing]

I always loved Gunloc's lore, and I really hope he returns as a Street Fighter character with everything built up around him intact.

[@meganinten0078]

Yeah! Hope we see Gunloc in a new game as Blade Maybe Blade can be Gunloc's heel persona. Blade was my favorite character in Street Fighter The Movie The Game.

[@joezar33]

​@@meganinten0078if Gunloc/Blade was a DLC, be awesome if capcom gave him all his old school slam master Wrestling moves, he be awesome in a Marvel or SNK crossover game

[@PontFlair]

This game was ILL!! At this time, Pro-Wrestling games did not have the greatest graphics, and then THIS came along. This is a CLASSIC.

[@djpee25]

The very last split second pin break in tornado matches kept the adrenaline high! Such good times,Stingray and Oni were our faves,as we loved luchadores back then,and they had so many moves,especially El Stingray!!

[@nathanbelnap9670]

Love wrestling, love games. Had this on SNES, unbelievably fun playing tag team all the way to the belt!

[@roddricktillman2996]

I used to play this game all the time! I was able to find it again during last year. One of my favorites! 💯💪🏾

[@matthewkey689]

I think we rented this game every sleepover we had. But l think we played it on the SNES. And of course had to use the Multitap. Such great memories.

[@GHOST91141]

😂😂 I know me & my friends did as well

[@DrDoomBloom]

There was a place in Maryland called Fun Jungle when I was a kid that Slam Masters as one of the arcade machines and between it, Super Street Fighter 2 and the Simpsons side scroller game, I’d spend $20 in a few hours EASILY.

[@casedistorted]

I remember playing this game in Arcades a lot as a kid in the 90's, it was such a fun one. I loved when it came to home consoles.

[@RikkiRoxxNWS]

I never played or even saw it in the arcade, but the SNES version blew my mind when I rented it as a kid. I've never been great at it, but just the aesthetic alone is supremely inviting and addictive to the point where you just wanna keep playing. I've beaten it, but I always struggle a bit with it. Definitely an unfairly overlooked Capcom game.

[@spookerredmenace3950]

loved both versions on SNES and Sega Genesis

[@dhkim3986]

Used to run to this video rental store right after middle school to play this. Loved it!

[@BV-Auto]

There was a really fun wrestling arcade game created by Konami. I cant remember the name of it. i only remember this "You can win the next round, go for it!!!"

[@PontFlair]

Hmmm... Was it Main Event?

[@BV-Auto]

@@PontFlair Ahh! Yes thank you.

[@PontFlair]

@@BV-Auto I was watching a long play of The Main Event yesterday LOL

[@BV-Auto]

@@PontFlair I was eating nachos yesterday

[@joezar33]

I actually dig all of Gunloc none canon related to Guile and secretly being Blade .

[@officerperez]

Not only did I specifically buy the multitap for this, Natsume Championship Wrestling, and RAW is War back in the day, but I recently repurchased Slam Masters on SNES a few years ago for less than $20. Winning! 😂

[@PontFlair]

That Natsume Championship Wrestling is a good Pro-Wrestling game. I believe it's based on All-Japan Pro-Wrestling. Raw is War is a game I owned on Genesis. It didn't touch Slam Masters though.

[@generalkhan5569]

I remember playing this game backin the day had a lot of fun, I always thought it wouldve been cool that since they featured Haggar then why not feat E. Honda and Zangief seeing they were all under capcom and were wrestlers too.

[@PontFlair]

I said in a thread in these comments that it would've been great if Zangief was an unlockable character. Throwing in Honda would've been great as well.

[@damiana5268]

There was def a reason to play this in the arcades. For the bragging rights. This is the type of game that goes great with a group of friends. Still looks great

[@Lonely_Gamer85]

I had the chance of playing the first Slammasters on arcade cabinet. Although that monkey guy kicked my ass ,the sweet memory of that day stuck with me. Sad that these type wrestling/fighting games are not being made these days. I think Slammasters could have been successful if Capcom had kept investing on it. Man a fighting/wrestling game with visual style of KOF13 or Guilty Gear Strive would have been amazing.

[@-_._._-]

I rented this game, I think from a Blockbuster, as a kid, for the Sega Genesis. This was an amazing game.

[@B0110CK5]

This game rules. They used to have a Slam Masters machine at a laundry mat I live near when I was a wee lad, this was my Street Fighter 2 for a long time. Many fond memories of asking my mom if I could have one more dollar to beat Gunloc.

[@davefrancis4529]

Taito’s Champion Wrestler is still my favorite Wrestling game. Genuinely winnable at higher title matches and great variety as you proceed through the game.

[@magmatt813]

I was a big fan of pro wrestling and Street Fighter II. I loved this game growing up. Sadly, I never owned but it was a frequent rental request when I was young.

[@SPac316]

I love this game. I played the arcade and SNES versions. I never played the sequel. It's strange that they went with the traditional Fighting game style instead of the wrestling gameplay.

[@PontFlair]

That's why I hate the sequel bc they went away from Pro-Wrestling. The Pro-Wrestling aspect combined with the fact that it's Capcom made Slam Masters special to me.

[@Steely_Fran]

Oh wow! I've been trying to remember the name of this game for years. What's funny is that I didn't realize this was the game until I saw Rasta do that arm flapping move. I remember that move specifically because I couldn't figure out how to get back inside the ring at first, so I just stood there flapping my arms until I got counted out. My friends and I had been smoking bongs while we played, so it was pretty funny. Also, when we rented this from the local video store it came with the multi-tap. So all we played were 4 player matches.

[@RagingRowen]

Yeah the dealbreaker with the first game is that strikes and grapples are on the same button, making the latter rather hard to pull off since you had to be right up close the opponent to use them like how throws in Street Fighter originally worked. I enjoyed Muscle Bomber Duo more coz the Grapples are tied to the Pin button and no longer proximity based so there's less frustration when trying to get the move you want, but I too wish they kept singles matches in. I would've much preferred Slam Masters 2 if it didn't go the plain fighting game route and stuck to the gameplay of the previous games with the button layout of Duo but with a few more refinements plus the expanded roster and movesets from 2.

[@meganinten0078]

I would like a Slam Master 3 with all the characters from the previoud two games plus R. Mika, Abel, Alex, El Fuerte, Hugo/Andore, etc. Even Blade from SF the Movie the Game could return as Gunloc's heel persona.

[@LBOOGIEDAMANN]

I bought this for Super as a kid with my allowance. One of the best videogames of my childhood.

[@EmpyrealFlux]

I believe The Scorpion was also inspired by another Mexican luchador, Tinieblas and Tinieblas jr. Tinieblas was one of the first luchadores to wrestle in Japan in the 70's so it makes sense that he would be known over there.

[@timbartschwolfman]

A rare Wednesday upload from our Good pal Wrestling Bios

[@steelcurtain187]

I played this a ton as a kid on the home consoles. Maybe one day we will get an unexpected sequel or collection of the old ones.

[@PedroBenolielBonito]

'Michael the Horrible'. I understood that reference.

[@ZekeThePlumber86]

I have this game on Capcom stadium. It's still just as fun as ever!

[@bigjermboktown6976]

These are always the best kind of games. I just like games that are games and don't try to seem to real

[@simplesimonhadapie]

Wrestlefest is the king of arcade wrestling games as it looks amazing, the attention to detail and the roster is basically entirely iconic

[@PontFlair]

Both look amazing. You can't go wrong with either of the 2. Slam Masters got to console though. I wish Wrestlefest did too.

[@jayb-clay2724]

I rented this for genesis all the time... grandma was manager of a store when I was a kid. RAW was always out but everyone slept on this gem... Scorp was my man.

[@polarbear138]

in a perfect world, we would get a Muscle Bomber/Slam Masters game with the AKI engine

[@PontFlair]

That sounds great. AKI proved it can do this sort of game when they did the M.U.S.C.L.E. Series.

[@polarbear138]

@@PontFlair I love the Ultimate Muscle game for GameCube! Pretty fun game.

[@PontFlair]

​@@polarbear138I wish Capcom had stuck with the original premise of Slam Masters. To keep it in the Pro-Wrestling ring and keep putting out games. It was such a great concept. They ruined it by making it just another fighting game. They had something with this game.

[@cfairfax85]

Many weekend nights up late playing this with my homie steve. Such great memories. The one on sega was great because it had a different match type. This is STILL one of my favorites at 38 years old.

[@MrPicklecopter]

Me and my cousin would rent this and stay up all night during summer break

[@striderskorpion]

Specifically, it uses the CPS Dash hardware. It's an in-between board as it's mostly CPS1, but with QSound (what the CPS2 has).

[@brandonfields613]

Localizers grossly taking liberties with japanese media? You dont say lol. Thanks for the upload bios!

[@mrfitz2727]

Absolutely loved this as a child.

[@meganinten0078]

4:09 'What a twist!' the ending. 4:33 Golly! Blade looks awesome in that artwork! 😮 4:40 The Bison Troopers (Shadaloo Troopers) are cyborgs so that means Gunloc became one. Poor dude 😅 Blade is my favorite character in Street Fighter the Movie the Game. Would be awesome to see him back in a new game. Maybe he can be Gunloc's heel persona

[@HillsideVids]

I can't possibly count how many times I rented this game as a kid.

[@damiencrossley7497]

A rental at Kelvin's TV! Good times!

[@Matt_Barkley]

I never played the arcade version, but I used to rent the super nintendo version all the time.

[@seanjones7339]

I remember playing this game with my cousins for days

[@coachadamtaylor38]

This game was one of my favorites from the pawn shop

[@KaBeeM]

We didn't have arcades where I grew up but we had a rental store taht had a ton of SNES games and I usually would go by after school and rent different games. I went through al of the available SNES games but there were only a couple that I rented more than once. Saturday Night Slam Masters was one of them. I must have rented it dozens of times. I often went by the place with a classmate I played street fighter with a lot and we would look for new games. If there weren't any new games, SNSM was always a good fallback.

[@GregHuffman1987]

i recall playing this on ZNes

[@nathanpoertner]

This has always been my favorite wrestling game of all time I rented it all the time as a kid and had to buy it from gamestop back in the day. Stingray was always my favorite character.

[@PontFlair]

Stingray and Scorpion made an awesome Tag-Team.

[@carlosrojas9523]

One of my favorite games from the SNES era. Definitely played a lot of this as a kid. Also, wrestling bios, you forgot to point out that you can use weapons on the outside of the ring and toss them in the ring as well.

[@pbutch217]

I spent hours on this playing coop tornado tag team matches with my brother growing up. Can't wait to watch!

[@funkyfresh_rhyme]

I used to play this game sooooo much at the Arcade back in the days.... Good Times. I'm old.

[@gashmcnash3537]

Blade’s profile Dislikes: suspicious people. Wearing the most sinister mask 😂

[@meganinten0078]

Blame the person who design the uniforms in Shadaloo 😆 At least Blade and the others Bison Troopers (Arkane, Khyber, F7) look amazing in the SFV site

[@gashmcnash3537]

@@meganinten0078 😂

[@TV-Tony]

Loved this game and was glad to beat it on both the arcade and SNES wit Alexander the Grater. And in tag team mode with Grater and Scorpion.

[@dantekyle1775]

Played this on SNES. Thought it was gonna be like the other wrestling games but damn it blew my little mind away. Rented it at least 3 more times and it was gone.

[@JoshHatfield]

Man I used to play this for hours on my FM Towns Marty! What a great name for a console

[@GHOST91141]

Walk into Blockbuster and saw this game and ended up renting it & keeping it for 4 extra days 😂

[@anthonyterry8162]

Absolutely love this game and I still play it on my SNES whenever i have a chance. I used to rent this game over and over

[@elec8101]

One of Capcom's many underrated games of the 90's. El Stingray is one of my favorites, specially in the sequel.

[@PontFlair]

I wasn't into the fighting game sequel. On Slam Masters though, El Stingray was my guy. After unlocking Scorpion, him and Stingray became my go to Tag-Team.

[@loboneiner1034]

This is the game the got me into wrestling in the first place. I rented the SNES version because I saw Mike Haggar was in it cause I was big into Final Fight and got hooked on the wrestling aspect.

[@avdhutjoshi8941]

What a intro🔥🔥🔥. Intro game growing day by day. WB editors on fire 🔥🔥❤️

[@Titus921]

Rasta Mon was base on a Dominican wrestler name Jack Veneno who also fought Rick Flare in Dominican Republic in the 80"s. Also Dominica and Dominican Republic are two different nations on the Caribbean I know it can be confusing and more confusing that the Japanese team gave him a Jamaican name and made him leave in the jungle but they are no jungles in the Caribbean. Top Hat Gaming on youtube got an episode about this game if anyone want more info about it.

[@ca177]

One of THE BEST arcade FIGHTING games from the mid 90s !! It has it ALL: - technical complexity of street fighter. (you needed timing and dexterity to execute the strongest moves, AND ESCAPE grabs) - characters with distinct aspects - 4 player play - winners stay on the machine Imagine mashing Smash Brothers with Street Fighter !! THE LIFE DRAIN BUG:: - climb to the top rope.. Press your start button (1P to 4P) until the character is red.. - CLIMB DOWN the rope, DO NOT JUMP… Then grab any opponent and throw them… The damage will be magnified 4x !!

[@OnlyBuilt4FinancialContracts]

This where they got Zangief & M.Bison’s moves, plus Vega’s Flying Suplex

[@lordrayden3045]

It’s the other way around

[@shanehall4454]

I love this game would definitely put it in my all time favorite wrestling games

[@mikehunt9884]

damn i remember, SNK also made an arcade wrestling game, it did have some similarities to this too. It was called 3 count bout or something

[@McPoshSquatch]

Absolutely LOVED this game when it came out. Wish I still had it, my Super Nintendo and all the other games I had. 😢

[@douglepong]

Does anyone remember WWF Superstars in the Arcade? I loved that wrestling game!

[@memphis-uy9sy]

I was addicted to this game

[@PopeCop]

I absolutely loved the hell out of that game as a kid!

[@chubbycatfish4573]

I remember renting this game for the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis at the same time just because the Genesis version had death matches. lol

[@PontFlair]

I think sound-wise, I preferred the SNES version and graphically, I preferred the Genesis version.

[@ArionRDAW]

I had Muscle Bomber on the Super Famicom and what struck me was the music. It was as memorable as the themes from Street Fighter II.

[@joebarry4691]

GaaawdDammit.. How did I miss so many good games as a kid. And I was stuck playing the same trash for years😢

[@PontFlair]

It happens. "Tecmo World Wrestling" was an awesome Pro-Wrestling game on NES too. That and "Pro Wrestling" (the grandfather of Fire-Pro) were the 2 best NES Pro-Wrestling games on the console.

[@Ttw1976]

This and wrestlefest were real good back then

[@presntnow]

Love the classic arcade games ❤

[@floodred2904]

The snes version if you beat it twice without continuing Ortega challenges you at the end if you beat it with continuing random wrestlers come out of locker room and challenge you genesis mega drive have neither ending.

[@shawnyboywoodford1994]

Definitely one of my favorites on the SNES still remember playing it very young it was a blast!!

[@steelcurtain187]

The dread lock is a brilliant name for a move 😆